The impact of foliar salt deposition, similar to that which is predicted to occur in the vicinity of the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station, was investigated on cantaloupe and cotton. Simulated salt drift was applied throughout the growing season. There was an increase in the amount of lead found in the fruit harvested from the highest treatment level as compared to the untreated plants. No other observable salt-induced responses were observed in the cantaloupe. A trend toward reduced yields was observed in the cotton plots receiving the salt treatments.

Cantaloupes for fresh market were studied as an alternative crop for the farmers in the Safford valley. Three varieties were tested with the top variety yielding over 1000 cwt per acre. The quality of the fruit was good, but work needs to be done to determine if there is a slot in the market for fruit from this area.

Slicing cucumbers were studied as an alternative crop for farmers in the Safford valley. Four varieties were tested, with the top variety yielding more than 676 cwt per acre. More work needs to be done to determine the quality and value of the crop, but generally it appears that slicing cucumbers could be produced in the area.

Lettuce stand problems in desert production areas are, in many instances, related to high seedbed temperatures and the use of seed coatings. We evaluated the use of fusicoccin and other growth regulators to improve the performance of naked and coated lettuce seeds at high temperature. Treatment of both naked and coated seeds with fusicoccin markedly increased the rate and total emergence of seedlings incubated at 35 °C for 10 hours alternating with 23 °C for 14 hours.

Several designs for yellow sticky traps where placed on the periphery of cotton and lettuce fields and evaluated to determine the most efficient type for capturing bandedwinged and sweetpotato whiteflies. Cylindrical traps caught more (55% of the total) than the other designs; upward-facing horizontal traps caught 26 %, vertical traps 16% and downward- facing horizontal traps 3 %. The number of both species of whiteflies captured by the various designs placed around fields was compared with the number caught on traps in lettuce field interiors. Catches from cylindrical and upward-facing horizontal traps were consistantly correlated at high levels with field populations. Traps placed at ground level caught a significantly higher number of whiteflies when compared with those placed at 50 and 100 centimeters (81% of the total versus 11% and 7% respectively). Aerial traps displayed more variation with field populations than did ground level traps.

In response to the request for alternative crop production information, 92 varieties of long-day onions were planted on the Safford Agricultural Center. Many varieties performed well, with the top variety yielding almost 480 cwt per acre. It appears that onions can be a viable alternative crop for some farmers in the upper Gila valley.

A number of plant viruses were isolated from diseased cucurbits in Arizona during 1982 -85. Watermelon mosiac virus 2, cucumber mosaic virus, and squash mosaic virus are previously recognized viral pathogens in Arizona and in most years are not considered economically threatening to cucurbit production. Three newly described plant viruses (lettuce infectious yellows, watermelon curly mottle and zucchini yellow mosaic) however, have the potential to, or already have, incited serious epidemics in Arizona. Losses are heaviest with these diseases when insect vector levels build up early in the growing season and plants become infected during critical developmental stages.

Application of water and fertilizer through buried drip lines shows promise for vegetable production in Arizona. Use of an acidic product is necessary if phosphorus is added through the system. Urea phosphate was shown to be a satisfactory product for injecting into buried drip lines for squash and cabbage.

Drip irrigation lines placed 15 cm (deep) and 5 cm (shallow) below soil surface were compared to furrow irrigation with zucchini squash as a summer crop and cabbage as a winter crop. Both crops were grown on the same drip lines in each treatment. Urea phosphate was injected in drip lines during growing season while the furrow-irrigated plots received preplant application of phosphorus. In squash, deep lines produced higher yields than did shallow. Deep-drip yields were comparable to those with furrow but used half the water and half the fertilizer. In cabbage, deep-drip yielded slightly higher than shallow-drip and furrow. In these studies, deep-drip was superior in applying water and fertilizer.

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